Formation of electrically conducting mesoscale wires through self-assembly of atomic clusters

Jim G Partridge; Shelley Scott; Alan D F Dunbar; Monica Schulze; Simon A Brown; Andreas Wurl; Richard J. Blaikie

doi:10.1117/12.498883

29 April 2003 Formation of electrically conducting mesoscale wires through self-assembly of atomic clusters

Jim G Partridge, Shelley Scott, Alan D F Dunbar, Monica Schulze, Simon A Brown, Andreas Wurl, Richard J. Blaikie

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 5118, Nanotechnology; (2003) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.498883
Event: Microtechnologies for the New Millennium 2003, 2003, Maspalomas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain

Abstract

Atomic clusters can be produced in a size range (100nm to 0.5nm) that bridges the gap between the limits of current lithographic fabrication technologies for integrated circuits and the atomic/molecular regime. The work presented here aims to combine established top-down device processing with bottom-up engineered cluster assembly. Conducting cluster deposition and standard optical fabrication techniques have been used to produce wires on a textured (V-grooved) substrate. The lengths of the wires (ranging from 2μm to 1mm) are defined simply by the separation of NiCr/Au contacts. The deposited nanoparticles range in size from 20-100nm and in principle define the width of the nanowire. In-situ conductance measurement allows precise control of the deposition process and the onset of conduction in the wire is readily monitored as a function of deposition time. The effectiveness of the surface templating technique is demonstrated by SEM and AFM imaging carried out after deposition. The surface coverage is seen to vary from <20% on the unpatterned (normal-to-beam) surface (which is required to be non-conducting) to >100% at the apexes of the V-grooves used to promote growth of the wire. Self assembly of the nanoparticles leads to completion of a wire between the pre-formed contacts with no possibility of a parasitic conduction path. Wires formed through this technique currently have minimum widths of ~1μm but straightforward extensions of the technique should soon allow nanowire formation.

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Jim G Partridge, Shelley Scott, Alan D F Dunbar, Monica Schulze, Simon A Brown, Andreas Wurl, and Richard J. Blaikie "Formation of electrically conducting mesoscale wires through self-assembly of atomic clusters", Proc. SPIE 5118, Nanotechnology, (29 April 2003); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.498883

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KEYWORDS

Silicon

Argon

Antimony

Bismuth

Silica

Nanowires

Scanning electron microscopy

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